Just when it looked like the Worcester Bravehearts had turned the corner and were finally getting things going in the right direction all the little things started going wrong again for the team and it led to a 1-4 week for the defending FCBL champions. To make matters worse, pitcher Miles Sheehan and outfielder Bobby Indeglia were both added to the disabled list and might be out the rest of the season. But there is some good news; as poor as the Bravehearts’ record is (6-14) they are just two games behind in the loss column for the last playoff spot and are still within reach of first place in their division.

On Tuesday the Bravehearts visited Brockton to take on the Rox, and after a delay cased by severe thunderstorms and tornado warnings the hitters must have decided to take the night off as both teams combined for just eight hits and a single run in Worcester’s 1-0 loss to Brockton. Jacob Stevens was the hard luck loser for the Bravehearts, surrendering just two hits and a single run via JD Andreessen‘s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fourth inning. TJ Riccio had two hits for the Bravehearts in the losing effort.

It was a record setting night for the home town team Wednesday when they hosted the Pittsfield Suns as Zack Tower became the first Bravehearts player to hit two home runs in a game. Tower’s first homer was a third inning grand slam over the left center field wall, just missing a sign that would have won a fan a free TV from team sponsor Percy’s. His followed that up with a solo shot in the seventh inning that went well over the left field wall and landed just a few feet short of I-290. Tower’s fireworks overshadowed Willie Allen‘s great night as the left fielder went 3-4 with 2 RBI. Suns shortstop Jeremy Giles went 3-4 with 2 RBI of his own in the 9-5 win for Worcester.

Thursday saw the Nashua Silver Knights visiting the HIP, and the night started off good for the Bravehearts when Alex Sanchez‘s single to center scored Willie Allen after an error by the Nashua center fielder. Unfortunately for Worcester that was the only run to cross the pate for the Bravehearts in a 4-1 loss. Charlie Ameer went 2-4 for Worcester in the loss. Kevin Magee scattered five Bravehearts hits in seven innings for the win while Tyler Schwanz had a solo shot for Nashua.

Worcester went off to Martha’s Vineyard for Friday night’s game, and unlike last time when the Bravehearts finally put an end to their regular season losing streak on the island this time it was all Sharks. Worcester did jump out front in the top of the first after Alex Sanchez doubled and Mike Coggeshall singled him home, but a two spot by MV in the bottom half set the tone. Dante Ricciardi tied it in the top half of the next inning when he drove in Gavin Tristan, but a four spot in the third by the Sharks put the Bravehearts in the rearview mirror as MV went on to win 10-5. Ryan Kelly went 4-5 with three runs scored for the Sharks, while Jon Mayer was 2-3 and had 3 RBI.

Bristol was the visiting opponent Saturday night, and as the Blues often do they manufactured runs in several innings while using their bullpen to keep Worcester in check during a 3-2 loss for the Bravehearts. Worcester starter Mike Bruemmel‘s seven strikeout performance was wasted as the Bravehearts left 14 runners on base, which includes nine that were in scoring position. Worcester’s best chance was the fourth inning where after already scoring a run they had the bases loaded and only one out. Four pitches later and Bristol was out of the inning. Gavin Tristan went 2-3 with a double in the loss, while Liam Scafariello went 2-3 for the victorious Blues.

Sunday’s game vs Pittsfield was rained out.

210Sports’ Bravehearts of the week
Pitcher: Mike Bruemmel with seven strikeouts and just one earned run allowed in six innings pitched.
Batter: Zack Tower with two home runs and 5 RBI, and becoming the first Bravehearts player to hit two home runs in a game.

Around the FCBL
Tuesday
The North Shore Navigators hosted the Bristol Blues, and after Bristol tied it in the top of the eighth the Navigators put up three in the bottom of the frame for an eventual 5-2 win. North Shore first baseman Chad Martin broke the late-game tie with a two run double, and then scored himself on a MJ Brown double. Speros Varinos closed the game out with his sixth save of the season, which at the time led the FCBL. Ryan Costello had a fifth inning homer to lead Bristol… The Nashua Silver Knights put up a seven run second inning and never looked back in a 10-2 drubbing over the visiting Pittsfield Suns. Nick Angelini, Tyler Schwanz, Brett Chappell, Jimmy Hand, and Erik Ostberg all had two RBI games for Nashua. Connor Johnson struck out three in two inning in a mop-up role for the Suns… Severe weather caused two games to be postponed, with the Seacoast Mavericks at Wachusett Dirt Dawgs game being rescheduled to July 25th and the Martha’s Vineyard at Torrington Titans being postponed with no make-up date announced.

Wednesday
Seacoast visited Brockton and put themselves behind the eight-ball early by giving up three runs over the first two innings, but then they put up multiple runs in the third and seventh and took a two run lead into the bottom of the ninth after adding an insurance run in their half of the frame. That run was needed as the Rox managed to get one back in their half of the inning, but Ryan Ross struck out the only Rox batter he faced for the Mavericks and saved the 5-4 win. Brockton’s Robbie Coursel struck out six in four innings but wasn’t involved in the decision… Bristol came north to take on Wachusett and scored single runs in the first five innings to cruise to a 6-3 win over the Dirt Dawgs. Blues first baseman Gerrad Rohan went 4-5 on the night with two runs scored, while Ty Robinson struck out three for the two inning save. Jon Kristoffersen went 3-5 with a stolen base in the losing effort for the Dirt Dawgs… It took ten innings to determine the winner when Torrington visited Martha’s Vineyard, with the Titans Jeremy Pena notching an RBI double knocking in the eventual game winner. Pena would score on a Nick Lamberti single for the 4-2 final. Brian Campbell went 2-4 with a double and a stolen base for the Sharks… The Navigators and Silver Knights got together in Nashua, and the three run second inning by North Shore was all they would need for the 5-1 win. Mason Koppens was 3-5 with 3 RBI for the Navigators while MJ Brown added a solo shot in the victory. Max Burt was 3-5 for the losing Silver Knights.

Thursday
The Suns and Titans got together for a twin bill in Pittsfield, with both teams coming away with a win on the night. The first game took just 94 minutes as the pitchers dominated, with Adam Erkis getting the 1-0 win for the Suns scattering three hits over six innings. Dom Grillo earned his sixth save on the season, tying him with Speros Varinos for the FCBL lead. David Gerics went the distance for Torrington, allowing just a single run in the fourth inning in the loss. In the second game Torrington opened up a four run lead after two and held on for the 5-3 victory. Titans catcher Joel Roman had a second inning two-run homer, while Hunter Bross hit a solo shot in the bottom of that frame… The Rox took on the Mavericks in the back half of their home and home, and it was Will D’Agostino‘s two run single in the bottom of the eighth that was the difference in a 3-2 win for Seacoast. Michael Purcell went 3-4 with an RBI for the Mavericks, while Nick Johnson went 3-4 and Tommy Marcinczyk homered for Brockton… Bristol and Wachusett were also on the back half of a home and home series, and Tyler Packanik‘s RBI single in the bottom of the eighth was the game winner for the Blues in their 3-2 victory over the Dirt Dawgs. Robert Paccione picked up his first win on the season for the Blues with 1 2/3rds innings of relief while Zach Zona struck in six in 5 1/3rd innings for Wachusett… North Shore went to Martha’s Vineyard to take on the Sharks, and after falling behind early the Navigators put up a four spot in the top of the eighth to tie it, only to surrender four runs in the bottom of the frame for the 8-4 win for MV. Jack Roberts, Kevin Brice, and Garet Griffin all went 2-4 for the home Sharks, while MJ Brown homered for North Shore.

Friday
Brockton visited Seacoast and were not so nice guests as the Rox scored a total of five runs in the middle three frames to help get them to a 7-2 win over the Mavericks. Kyle Carruthers, Austin Filiere, and Tommy Marcinczyk all homered for Brockton, with Carruthers being just a triple short of the cycle. Ryan Gendron had the only extra base hit, a double, for Seacoast… Pittsfield visited Wachusett and used a five run fourth inning and a four run sixth inning to outdistance the Dirt Dawgs 11-5. Jeremy Giles and Ryan Olmo both homered for the Suns as all nine batters for Pittsfield scored at least one run. Kurtis White went 3-5 for Wachusett, while Chris Chiaradio contributed a single and a double in 3 AB… Bristol and Torrington got together in a battle of Nutmeg State teams and it was the Blues coming out on top 5-2 over the host Titans. Bristol starter Troy Terzi scattered three hits and struck out eight in six innings for the win while Ty Robinson struck out three of the four batters he faced in picking up his fourth save of the season… North Shore took advantage of eight walks surrendered by Nashua pitchers and three errors by the Silver Knights defense to roll to 9-1 home victory. Chad Martin went 2-4 with two runs scored for the Navigators while Tim Superko struck out three in five innings for his second win of the season. Nick Angelini was 2-3 with an RBI for Nashua.

Saturday
The Titans and Rox needed 11 innings to determine a winner, and it was Tommy Marcinczyk’s RBI single in the bottom of the frame that gave Brockton the 8-7 win over Torrington. The Rox started out the scoring with three in the second inning, but the Titans came right back with three of their own in the third. Torrington had another three spot in the sixth to tie the game, and both teams exchanged runs in the eighth to set up extras. Tommy Stoffel earned the win for Brockton with 3 1/3 shutout innings of relief while also going 1-3 at the plate with two walks, two runs, and an RBI. Tim Budd had a two run double to lead the Titans… Pittsfield had a four run fourth and three run sixth en route to a 10-6 win over Wachusett. The Suns were led by first baseman Zane Smith, who went 2-4 with a homer and 5 RBI. Center fielder Josh Hassell also had a multi-RBI night for Pittsfield, going 3-3 with three walks and 3 RBI. The Dirt Dawgs, who had a three run eighth inning to make the score look respectable, had a 2-3 night with a homer from Jon Kristoffersen and three hit nights from both Chris Stanford and Justin Silvestro… Hitters ruled the night in Martha’s Vineyard when the Sharks hosted Seacoast, with the teams combining for 21 runs, 20 hits, and 16 walks in an 11-10 win for MV. It was tied after eight, and with one out in the bottom of the ninth Brian Campbell singled in Garet Griffin with the game winner. Campbell finished the night 3-4 with three runs scored and 2 RBI. Kevin Brice was also 3-4 with 2 RBI for the Sharks. The Mavericks were led by Ryan Gendron, who hit his FCBL leading seventh homer while knocking in six. Gendron also leads the league in RBI… North Shore visited Nashua and found themselves down a run after a fourth inning sacrifice fly by Silver Knights right fielder Tyler Schwanz. The Navigators stormed back with consecutive two run innings in the fifth and sixth to eventually cruse to a 6-1 win. North Shore shortstop Brandon Fischer went 2-5 with 2 RBI, while Tanner Bush, Chad Martin, MJ Brown, and Michael Rizzitello also had two hits each for the Navigators.

Sunday
The entire slate of FCLB games was rained out.
Seacoast @ North Shore was rescheduled to July 19th as part of a double header
Brockton @ Nashua was a double header, no word as of yet about those two games
Martha’s Vineyard @ Wachusett, Torrington @ Bristol, and Pittsfield @ Worcester all have no rescheduled date announced